I'd be surprised if she did another film that had to draw on as much of herself as this and was as challenging as this. Antonioni was exploring the settings in this film but he was also drawing as much out of Monica Vitti as he could too. He obviously found her an interesting subject.
shareWell i just watched Red Desert and i was pretty much blown away by the film. I thought WOW! wtf is this? What Genius must Antonioni be in order to create such fantastic athmosphere and such brilliant cinematography. Unbelievable dream sequences and such poetic dialogue.
But Monica Vitti somehow never made me believe the things she said. I realized her face doing a lot, even in the most silent moments of the film. She consantly moved her eyes and very less of the moves she took seemed fluid. It all seemed kinda exxagerated acting. You get to see a lot of actors coming from theatre to film, doing exactly this mistake.
But on the other hand, i think maybe Antonioni wanted her to be acting so strange, in order to stress the strange environment and athmosphere she was living in.
I dont know, but i liked Monica Vitti better in L'avventura, L'Eclisse and La Notte.
Well I suppose there are different styles of acting, maybe it's just more of an Italian style perhaps. Maybe they might be more dramatic or outwardly expressive than some other cultures? Maybe it's just a matter of getting used to the style.
This must have been her biggest role in one of his films in the others you mention she wasn't maybe exploring a state of mind to quite the same extent and the burden of the leading roles was shared more between other actors. L'Eclisse might come closest but even there the emphasis may have been even more on the settings than the character. The character in Red Desert is more of an extreme one as well perhaps and it may have called for a different approach. We have to see it partly through her eyes I think so she does need to create some kind of presence in the film which makes her more central than other characters.
I think this is the most challenging role of the 5 she did for Antonioni and this is her best performance she gave him.
Although she probably had to do some pretty impressive acting in the bedroom with him to further her career but then again I'm just a cynic...
She was truly great.
"I did cramps the way Meryl Streep did accents" - Calliope (Middlesex)
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It took me a little while to actually finish watching the film. But I found Ms. Vitti's scene with the dock worker, where she explains feeling "separated" and that "she's been sick but that she must not think about that because everything that happens to her is her life" very affecting. Not overwrought or "too rehearsed" as what other people would say. It was natural and unforced and I agree that this is her strongest performance out of all those films she made with Antonioni.
And I like the fact that the film ends on somewhat of an optimistic note, because Ms. Vitti's monologue, after all, reinforces our ability to adapt.
I have to disagree. Her emoting reminded me of the overacting prevalent in the 40s. After seeing her in several films I'd have to say she's best when she's restrained and calm.
shareHer character was in a near-constant state of near-hysteria. Kinda hard to be restrained and calm if you're trying to portray frenzy.
~ Native Angeleno
I thought she was excellent in this film. Especially some of her very subtle body movements I saw her do. Most of it was very natural but i can see how some say it was overacting...But all in all I loved her performance in this film.
shareHmm, I thought she was far and away the film's greatest detriment. Everything about her seemed contrived and overwrought. Shame, too -- since the film's narrative is centered on her, it really drags down a visually overwhelming work.
Polus, I've just gotten myself some marvelous tyrannical power!
I don´t think I´ve ever been fully convinced by Vitti´s acting and here it´s indeed a little on the overwrought side, becoming somewhat distracting occasionally - even if it´s a brave (and to a considerable extent, successful) effort in a difficult role.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
This is gonna come across as incredibly juvenile but couldn't he have gone with a less attractive actress this time around? She looked so goddamned gorgeous in almost every scene it became distracting. It doesn't help that I have a thing for emotionally scarred, eccentric woman. Not at all.
And more to the point, yes, this is probably her best performance for me too.
Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose.
I don´t think I´ve ever considered Vitti ´that´ good looking to begin with, myself.
The bit about "emotionally scarred, eccentric women" probably explains your fondness of Masina in La Strada & Le Notti Di Cabiria I recall you expressed.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
To be completely honest, I never quite found her that attractive either until THIS film... and I think... no, I'm sure... it has something to do with the color. The way it brought the blue eyes. The golden/brown hair. Those luscious pink lips. The green jacket. And, of course, the acting which just takes all of this beauty to another level.
The bit about "emotionally scarred, eccentric women" probably explains your fondness of Masina in La Strada & Le Notti Di Cabiria I recall you expressed.And Juliet of the Spirits (which, IMO, outranks both of those solid films). Masina brings such an innocence to her characters, it's difficult not to root for the lovely woman (and it probably doesn't help that she's placed in the most difficult of situations). Although... I don't know if her characters are "emotionally scarred" in the same vein as Vitti's character here (Guiliana is just inherently broken, scarred, isolated... whereas there always seems to be some form of uplifting spiritual redemption waiting for Masina's characters around the corner... there is no such cathartic rescue for Guiliana which makes the character more interesting by comparison...). This probably explains why I'm just "fond" of Masina's characters, lol.
Yeah, Monica Vitti... I guess I´ve always kind of wondered about Antonioni´s thing for her as, in addition to her not-so-great-for-a-movie-star looks (well, I guess being tall and blonde has a certain powerful effect on them Italians), she´s not really a great actress, either. Bergman´s muses, for instance, used to be more impressive on both fronts... Harriet Andersson, Bibi Andersson, Paul Thomas Anderson... oh, hell... Don´t get me wrong, Vitti is still adequate, though - even if her career as a high profile leading lady just about vanished after these collaborations (she seems to be in Bunuel´s Phantom Of Liberty, which I ain´t seen, but that´s about it. I HAVE seen her in a totally wacky, trashy 1966 James Bond spoof Modesty Blaise, though).
As for Masina, I would like to see her in a different role, not playing that same over-the-top buffoon she portrays in La Strada & Le Notti Di Cabiria (if you recall, I didn´t care for La Strada, in particular, at all). And I´d say her character in both of these films is more than just broken or scarred - she´s borderline clinically insane. Still seen only 3 Fellinis though. 8 1/2 awaits - one of these "huge" classics I´m yet to see - but I´m kinda apprehensive cuz not only is its rep sky high, but it´s also said to be a very blabbery movie and as well as kind of a hedonistically energetic one. Characteristics that are usually not my cup of gin and tonic.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
Well, after her remarkable performance here, I don't think I'd hesitate to mention Vitti among that lot. And, of course, when all is said and done, beauty is a matter of personal taste, anyway.
I thought she played a fairly 'normal' person in Nights of Cabiria myself but then it's been quite a while since I saw last it. And I was never quite bothered by her performance in La Strada either (I think it's the character you have issue with here rather than the performance itself). Regardless, I think you'll be pleased to know that in Juliet of the Spirits, her role IS perhaps a more nuanced one so that's another you should be looking forward to (also happens to be Fellini's first feature-length color film and it doesn't disappoint...)... which brings us to 8 1/2... definitely energetic and possibly a little self-indulgent (which is not a knock against the film... and I don't really recall any "blabbery" that didn't work but you have different standards here, of course)... but it just really comes wonderfully together. I have a feeling you'll like this one.
Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose.
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Vitti definitely has a memorable look. But a really poor actress. Very mannered, dated style of acting. At times completely over her head when she needs to express complex emotions.
Of course, real actors could not work with Antonioni for long. He used them as props.